Tigers shut out by Padres in 3-0 loss as Jack Flaherty struggles
Detroit Tigers score: Red-hot rookie Kevin McGonigle was held hitless with three strikeouts as the Tigers mustered just two hits against the Padres.
SAN DIEGO – The Detroit Tigers can't win them all. As expected, the Tigers won with left-handers Tarik Skubal and Framber Valdez leading the way in the first two games of the series against the San Diego Padres, but right-hander Jack Flaherty failed to maintain the momentum created by two of the best pitchers in baseball. The Tigers lost, 3-0, to the Padres on Saturday, March 28, in the finale at Petco Park.
As Flaherty struggled, the offense didn't do him any favors – no runs on just two hits – and neither did the defense, with a costly fielding error in the third inning. CLUTCH KEVIN: Inside Kevin McGonigle's epic 10-pitch battle that won game After facing the Padres (1-2), the Tigers (2-1) don't play Sunday, then continue their season against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Monday (10:10 p. m.
, Detroit SportsNet) at Chase Field – headlined by the return of their franchise icon, right-hander Justin Verlander. In Saturday's game, Flaherty allowed three runs (two earned runs) on four hits and four walks with two strikeouts across 4⅓ innings, throwing 89 pitches. He retired the first eight batters, then everything unraveled.
With two outs in the third inning, the Padres delivered three singles in a row from Freddy Fermin, Jake Cronenworth and Fernando Tatis Jr. The Tatis single came on a down-and-away slider that was slapped into right field, providing a 1-0 lead. A mistake let the Padres add on.